City council agreed to waive building permit fees for a seniors’ apartment development in downtown Owen Sound.
Lutheran Social Services made a request to the city to forego collecting about $125,000 of building permit fees for its six-storey, 40-unit apartment building planned at 1043 and 1057 3rd Avenue East — across the street from the Owen Sound Transit Terminal — and council passed a motion Monday to provide the incentive.
“I think we get so few opportunities to support housing. There (are) just not a lot of tools in our toolbox,” says Coun. Brock Hamley. “And this is one tool we have to actually help and advance it.”
A letter to council from Don Statham of Lutheran Social Services requesting the waiving of building permit fees says says the new seniors’ apartment building project, St. Clare Place, is “very close to being viable.”
Statham says Lutheran Social Services is expected to apply for a foundation permit for the project this month.
The city and Grey County have provided extensive incentives to this specific apartment project, which will offer half of its 40 units at affordable rates to meet the Canada Mortage and Housing Corporation threshold (80 per cent of average market rent).
In addition to the decision to waive building permit fees, Owen Sound is also not collecting about $389,000 of development charges. Grey County Housing is contributing $3-million to the build; some of those funds will support construction costs, and some paid out over 20 years to help cover operating expenses.
According to a past report to council, St. Clare Place will be comprised of purpose-built rental housing for seniors. There will be 35 one-bedroom units, and five two-bedrooms. The proposal also includes a commercial unit on the ground floor, and 23 parking spaces.
Tenants at St. Clare Place must be 65 and older and will be selected from Grey County’s waiting list for subsidized housing, according to a past Bayshore News report.
It’s been nearly three years since the new seniors’ apartment proposal was first brought to Owen Sound council.